Zollinger



March 17, 1964 H. ZOLLINGER 3,125,130

ARRANGEMENT ON A LOOM WITH FIXABLE LOOSE REED Filed Aug. 2, 1961 4Sheets-Sheet 1 March 17. 1964 H. ZOLLINGER ARRANGEMENT ON A LOOM WITHFIXABLE LOOSE REED 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 2, 1961 March 17, 1 964ZOLLlNGER v 3,125,130

ARRANGEMENT ON A LOOM WITH FIXABLE LOOSE REED Filed Aug. 2, 1961 4Sheets-Sheet 3 March 17, 1964 H. ZOLLINGER 3,125,130

ARRANGEMENT ON A LOOM WITH FIXABLE LOOSE REED 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 FiledAug. 2. 1961 24 10 F I 25 FIG. 4 w w 3/ 26 21 35 J6 E Q 44 E 9 45 UnitedStates. Patent 3,125,130 ANGEMENT ON A LOOM WITH FLE LOUSE REED Thisinvention relates to an arrangement on a loom with fixable loose reedwhose one baulk, incident to the beating up of a weft, is positivelylocked by pivoted reed holders which are rigidly connected to each otherand to at least one actuating arm which grips together with a supportingmember as the weft is beaten up.

In a loom of the type it is known that the reed not yet locked can swingout to the rear and force the reed holders back should the shuttle bejammed in the shed and the reed come against the shuttle. Thus breakingof the warp threads and damaging of the reed incident to the beating upof the lay and irregular course of the shuttle is prevented. Further inthe event of the shuttle being jammed and the reed coming against theshuttle, the latter must force the reed back. The whole force that isrequired for swinging out the reed and reed-holders, etc. must beproduced by the warp threads in which the shuttle is jammed. Inhigh-speed looms the accelerating forces that are then necessary forinstantly swinging out the reed are of such magnitude that in the caseof finer yarns often many threads will be broken or overstressed so asto cause appreciable damage.

The object of the present invention is to eliminate the aforementionedinconvenience. Accordingly it is principally characterized by theprovision of initially tensioned springs adapted to produce theaccelerating forces necessary for swinging out the reed in the event theshuttle is jammed in the shed.

This arrangement has the advantage that the forces which are necessaryfor swinging out the reed in the event the shuttle is jammed in theshed, need no longer be produced by the warp threads so that thesethreads are no longer stressed at all in the event the shuttle istrapped in the shed. Consequently it is no longer necessary to keep thedimensions of the loose reed and reed-holders small in order to preventbreakage of the warp threads in case of a shuttle being jammed. v

In different heavy fabrics the force upon the reed is of adiiferentmagnitude according to the type of fabric, not only with respect to theactual throw of the reed, but also immediately prior to this moment.These differences can be considered inasmuch as the magnitude of thepressure necessary to collapse the toggle joint according to theinvention is adjustable. In this way unnecessary swinging out of thereed can be avoided. 7

Other features of the invention will appear from the followingdescription and claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawing which represents, purely by way of example, one form ofembodiment incorporating the invention.

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary elevation view diagrammatically illustratingessential parts of a loom andrthe course of movement of the lay;

FIGS. 2 and 3 are fragmentary elevation views partly in vertical sectionand partly in side view, and each illustrate, in a different phase ofmovement, the arrangement according to the invention;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary elevation view similar to FIGS. 2 and 3, andillustrates the arrangement at the moment of throwing-out the reed by ashuttle being jammed in the shed.

For a better understanding of the object of invention,

some essential parts of a loom are represented in FIG. '1. The lay 1embodies a race plate 10 and a reed 11, between the reed teeth of whichthe warp threads 12 and 13 of the fabric 14 to be woven are passedthrough, which runs over a breast beam 15. The race plate 10 is attachedto two lay swords 16, only one of which is visible in FIG. 1, whichsupports are at their bottom end pivotally mounted by means ofhinge-pins 17 on the machine frame (not shown). Each lay sword 16 isconnected by means of a pusher arm 18 to a crank 19 driven by a shaft20. As the shaft 29 rotates with the crank 19, the lay 1 is imparted areciprocatory movement through the pusher arm :13. The solid linesrepresent the rear dead center A of the lay, whilst the broken linesshow the forward dead center B in which the previously inserted weft isbeaten up by the reed. Also represented in broken lines is anintermediary position C in which, as the lay moves forward in the senseof the arrow D (FIG. 3) i.e. to the right in FIG. l-the shuttle (notshown) must have left the shed in order not to interfere with themovement of the reed or to prevent the warp being endangered.

FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate the arrangement according to the positions Aand B (FIG. 1) of the lay. Race plate Ill, reed 11, warp threads 12 and13 and fabric 14 are given the same reference characters as in FIG. 1.The race plate it? made of, say wood, is supported on a rectangularprofiled metal tube 21 which is attached to the lay swords 16. The layswords have also arranged thereon a profiled metal bar 22 which formsthe lay cover. The reed '11 possesses an upper baulk 23 which engages agroove in the lay cover 22, and a lower baulk 24 which rests on aprofiled bar 25 that is attached to some reed holders 26, of which onlyone is visible in FIGS. 1 and 3, and which are connected to each otherby the profiled bar 25. The profiled bar 25 extends over the entirewidth of the reed 11. The number of reed-holders 26 may be as desired,depending on the width of the loom. Usually three holders 26 per meterwill suffice.

All reed holders 26 are fixedly mounted on a tubular shaft 27 which isjournaled in bearings (not shown) fixed to the lay swords d6. Said shaft27 is common to all reed-holders 26, at least one of which carries arigid operating arm 28 having a roller 29 rotatably mounted thereon. Therectangular profiled tube 21 has displaceably mounted therein atransverse pin 30 which, by means of a spring 31, can be pressed throughan opening in the wall of tube 21 towards the reed holder 26. Said pintends to rock the reed-holding lever 26 and thus the shaft 27 with theactuating arm 2%; counterclockwise and causes the roller 29 to pressagainst a lever or arm 32 which is pivotal about an axle 33. The lever32 has attached thereto a triangular plate 34 which carries a roller 35.Also pivotal about the axle 33 is a lever 36 having a pawl 37 which isrockable about a spindle 38 on lever 36. The pawl 37 embodies a shortarm 39 adapted to cooperate with a stationary setscrew at The lever 32with the triangular plate 34 having thereon the roller 35 may, togetherwith lever 36 and pawl 37, constitute a rigid triangle that is rockableabout the axle 33. A spring 41, stationarily supported at one end andpressing with its free end against the lever 36, tends to turn thistriangle counterclockwise and to press with the arm 32 against theroller 29. On the other hand, the roller 29 is pressed against the arm32 through the spring 31, as already mentioned. The triangle willtherefore adjust itself in such a way that equilibrium prevails betweenthe forces of the springs 31 and 4-1. In this position the setscrew M}can be set so as to provide quite a small gap 40a between setscrew illand arm 39.

The arranged actuating arms 28 have associated therewith a supportingmember 4-2, one each, which is formed by a lever oscillatably supportedwith a horizontal hingepin 44 on the loom frame 43. The top of themember 42 is movable in the direction of the picking movement of the lay1, against the action of a resetting spring 46 which on the one handengages the bottom end of member 42 and on the other hand is anchored tothe loom frame 43. For determining the position of rest of the member 42there is provided an adjustable stop formed by a setscrew 45. In theposition of rest (FIGS. 2 and 3) of the member 42 the resetting spring46 has a certain initial tension which may be varied by adjustingmembers (not shown).

The action of the described arrangement is as follows:

With the lay in its rear dead center (FIGS. 1 and 2) the torque exertedupon lever 32 by the pressure of roller 29 is smallest; the spring 41 isthus capable of securely holding the reed in its operative position(FIGS. 1, 2 and 3) even though, during the reversing movement of the lay(FIG. 1) in the rear dead center, the reed is subjected to appreciableinertia forces and is retarded in the following forward movement of thelay by friction on the warp threads 12 and 13. Also the shuttle 50,which at this moment runs through the open shed, cannot force the reed11 back against the action of spring 41.

If, with normal weaving operation, the lay 1 moves into the forward deadcenter B (FIGS. 1 and 3) for beating-up the inserted weft, the roller 29advances on lever 32 so far as to enable the actuating arm 28 to rest onmember :2 (FIG. 3). Thereby the latter is swung to a slight extentagainst the action of the resetting spring 46 and moves clear of thestop-screw 45. By the member 42 the arm 23 is prevented from movingdownwards in the sense of the arrow E (FIG. 4). The imaginary plane,which passes through the axes of roller 29 and shaft 27, extendssubstantially at right angles to the imaginary plane that passes throughthe axes of roller 29 and hingepin 44. In this way positive locking ofthe reed holders 26 and profiled bar 25 is provided. The reed 11 willthus be clamped at this moment and able to beat up properly the insertedweft, even if a heavy fabric is being woven that requires acomparatively strong beating-up force. Deviation of the profiled bar 25to the rear in the sense of the arrow F (FIG. 4) is impossible.

The reactive force of the beating-up pressure is transmitted from theactuating arm 28 to the member 42 substantially in radial direction tothe swing axle d4 of said member.

Should for any reason the shuttle 5i! be trapped in the shed, it will,as they lay passes through the intermediary position C (FIG. 1), forcethe reed 11 to the rear. At this moment the actuating arm 28 is not yetsupported by the member 42. The pressure of the shuttle against the reedll, assisted by the spring 31 acts upon the reed holder 26, theequilibrium of the forces that had prevailed between the springs 31 and41 is disturbed. The spring 41 is compressed to an extent. This causesthe arm 39 to abut on the set-screw 4th The powl 37 is rockedcounterclockwise and disengages with roller 35. Hence the lever 32 androller 29 are no longer supported. The actuating arm 28 comes againstthe back of member 42, whereby the spring 46 makes possible a yieldingor swinging of the member. Consequently the spring 31 can swing theprofiled bar 25 entirely out of engagement with the reed 11, asillustrated in FIG. 4.

The lay 1 can move still further forwards in the direction of the arrowD (FIG. 1) until the loom is stopped in known manner by beingdisconnected from the driving motor.

From the foregoing it appears that by the described arrangement anydamaging of the warp threads 12, 13, reed II, roller 29 and supportingmember 42 is practically excluded, even with the shuttle 5t) trapped inthe shed. The reed can be swung out with big force by the spring 31 assoon as, by a slight additional force of the shuttle St on the reed 11,the pawl 37 becomes disengaged from the triangular plate 34 with theroller 35. Nevertheless, in the rear dead center of the lay, the reed issecurely held and in the forward dead center firmly locked. Slidingfriction occurs nowhere, thus wear and tear in the arrangement are muchreduced. The big accelerating forces that are necessary for the reed andreed holders to be swung out in time in the event of the shuttleremaining jammed, are produced by the strong springs 31.

The adoption of a tubular shaft 27 has the advantage that, with itscomparatively light weight, it ensures optimum stiffness againsttwisting. Since the shaft extends over the full length of the lay,because of its bending strength it moreover appreciably contributes tostiffening the arrangement.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my saidinvention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare thatwhat I claim is:

1. In a loose reed motion for power looms having a shed, a lay movablealternately forwardly to beat up the weft and rearwardly, a reed movablysupported for movement with said lay, the improvement which comprises,means operable cyclically for releasably locking said reed in place whensaid reed is moved forwardly to beat up said weft and said shed is freeof obstructions, means to render ineffective said means operablecyclically to lock said reed when said shed is obstructed, and meansresponsive to the last-mentioned means to swing the reed rearwardlyindependent of the movement of said lay when said shed is obstructedthereby to preclude the reed from being moved rearward solely by theobstruction in Said shed and the warp threads and thereby to positivelypreclude breakage of said warp threads.

2. In a loose reed motion for power looms having a shed, a lay movablealternately forwardly to beat up the weft and rearwardly, a reed movablysupported for movement with said lay, the improvement which comprises,means operable cyclically for releasably locking said reed in placewhensaid reed is moved forwardly to beat up said weft and said shed is freeof obstructions, means to render ineffective said means operablecyclically to lock said reed when said shed is obstructed, and springactuated means responsive to the last-mentioned means to swing the reedrearwardly independent of said lay when said shed is obstructed therebyto preclude the reed from being moved rearward solely by the obstructionin said shed and the warp threads and thereby to positively precludebreakage of said warp threads.

3. In a loose reed motion for power looms having a shed, a lay movablealternately forwardly to beat up the weft and rearwardly, a reed movablysupported for move ment with said lay, the improvement which comprises,means operable cyclically to a state of equilibrium locking said reedpositively in place when said reed is moved forwardly to beat up saidweft and said shed is free of obstructions, means to preclude setting ofsaid state of equilibrium to render ineffective said means operablecyclically to lock said reed when said shed is obstructed, and includingmeans responsive to the last-mentioned means to swing the reedrearwardly independent of the said lay when said shed is obstructedthereby to preclude the reed from being moved rearward solely by theobstruction in said shed and the warp threads and to thereby positivelypreclude breakage of said warp threads.

4. In a loose reed motion for power looms having a shed, a lay movablealternately forwardly to beat up the weft and rearwardly, a reed movablysupported for movement with said lay, means operable cyclically to astate of equilibrium for locking said reed positively in place when saidreed is moved forwardly to beat up said weft and said shed is free ofobstructions, means to preclude setting of said state of equilibrium torender ineffective said means operable cyclically to lock said reed whensaid shed is obstructed, and means responsive to the absence of saidstate of equilibrium to swing the reed rearwardly independent of saidlay when said shed is obstructed thereby to preclude the reed from beingmoved O rearward solely by the obstruction in said shed and the warpthreads and thereby to positively preclude breakage of said warpthreads.

5. In a loose reed motion for power looms having a shed, a lay movablealternately forwardly to beat up the weft and rearwardly, a reed movablysupported for movement with said lay, means operable cyclically to astate of equilibrium locking said reed in place when said reed is movedforwardly to beat up said weft and said shed is free of obstructionsmeans to cooperative with said reed to sense an obstruction in said shedand preclude setting of said state of equilibrium to render inelfectivesaid means operable cyclically to lock said reed when said shed isobstructed, means responsive to the absence of said state of equilibriumto swing the reed rearwardly independent of the movement of said laywhen said shed is obstructed thereby to preclude the reed from beingmoved rearward solely by the obstruction in said shed and the warpthreads and thereby to positively preclude breakage of said warpthreads, and means to adjust the pressure said loom reed must developagainst said obstruction in said shed to cause preclusion of saidsetting of said state of equilibrium.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

1. IN A LOOSE REED MOTION FOR POWER LOOMS HAVING A SHED, A LAY MOVABLEALTERNATELY FORWARDLY TO BEAT UP THE WEFT AND REARWARDLY, A REED MOVABLYSUPPORTED FOR MOVEMENT WITH SAID LAY, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES,MEANS OPERABLE CYCLICALLY FOR RELEASABLY LOCKING SAID REED IN PLACE WHENSAID REED IS MOVED FORWARDLY TO BEAT UP SAID WEFT AND SAID SHED IS FREEOF OBSTRUCTIONS, MEANS TO RENDER INEFFECTIVE SAID MEANS OPERABLECYCLICALLY TO LOCK SAID REED WHEN SAID SHED IS OBSTRUCTED, AND MEANSRESPONSIVE TO THE LAST-MENTIONED MEANS TO SWING THE REED REARWARDLYINDEPENDENT OF THE MOVEMENT OF SAID LAY WHEN SAID SHED IS OBSTRUCTEDTHEREBY TO PRECLUDE THE REED FROM BEING MOVED REARWARD SOLELY BY THEOBSTRUCTION IN SAID SHED AND THE WARP THREADS AND THEREBY TO POSITIVELYPRECLUDE BREAKAGE OF SAID WARP THREADS.